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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27148750">2032</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Caffeinated_Dinosaur/pseuds/Caffeinated_Dinosaur'>Caffeinated_Dinosaur</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Motherland: Fort Salem (TV), The Last of Us (Video Games)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Multi</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-10-22</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-10-22</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 22:20:01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,370</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27148750</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Caffeinated_Dinosaur/pseuds/Caffeinated_Dinosaur</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>After infection caused by a mutated fungus spreads, humanity is forced to go back to good old fashioned survival. This is their story.</p><p>He stopped, turning up the volume to hear what the hell is going on. A woman in her mid-thirties is talking into a mike, standing in front of the white house. The words Breaking News running along the bottom of the screen.<br/>‘We interrupt this program to bring you the following urgent message.’ She waited, holding a hand to her ear, listening.<br/>‘There have been several hundred reports across the country of people becoming ill due to an infection caused by a mutated form of the ophiocordyceps unilateralis fungus. Infected patients experience symptoms that include fever, nausea, unexplained paranoia as well as disorientation and in some extreme cases random bursts of violence. It is advised that for the safety of the public, if you experience any of these symptoms that you immediately contact the following number displayed on the screen.’</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Adil/Abigail Bellweather, Gerit Buttonwood/Tally Craven, Raelle Collar/Scylla Ramshorn</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>7</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>18</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. 26 September 2013</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Hey guys, so I started this a couple of months ago – then decided to delete it all and restart. I had some stuff going on in my personal life, with university and family stuff. Previously you guys really liked the idea of a The last of us x Motherland: Fort Salem kinda thing, so I decided to rewrite it with a bit more backstory. Just a disclaimer: I do not own MFS/The last of us. Then: MY FIRST LANGUAGE isn’t English. Sometimes I make a few grammar mistakes.<br/>The first few chapters (4-5) will be pre-apocalypse, and the first few years after that. It will be written from the perspective of Edwin/Willa Collar. I decided to do it like that, so that if someone doesn’t know anything about The last of us, they could get a general idea for future references in the story. The majority of the story however, will be written from Raelle’s POV.<br/>I won’t be including any characters from the Last of Us, and if I do they won’t be main characters.<br/>I hope you enjoy reading this as much as I liked to write it.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>A father stands in the kitchen, cooking dinner for his family whilst he slowly sways from side to side listening to an old 80’s tune humming from the radio. With one hand he is stirring spaghetti sauce on the stove. The other he is using to hold up his baby girl, just short of a year old, who was sitting comfortably on his hip. She giggled at him when he sang to her, swaying her slowly from side to side. The only one to appreciate his singing – his wife always said it sounded like a cat who’s tail got stepped on.</p><p>“You know; your mother doesn’t appreciate my singing like you do” He looks into blue eyes who stare adoringly back into similar ones. She giggles, as if saying <em>daddy your singing aint good, I just enjoy the entertainment.</em></p><p>“Yeah okay, I guess my singing isn’t my best talent…but you can’t argue with the dancing” He takes his daughter into both arms and holds her close whilst he spins around, successfully causing his daughter to laugh hysterically.</p><p>“Told ya” he smiles and places his daughter into her eating stool in the living room, placing a bowl of purity in front of her.</p><p>He walks over to his armchair and picks up the remote, flipping through the channels to find something for his daughter to watch until his wife gets home, so they could eat dinner.</p><p>“This can’t be right” he mutters to himself, realizing that every channel was the same.</p><p>He stopped, turning up the volume to hear what the hell is going on. A woman in her mid-thirties is talking into a mike, standing in front of the white house. The words <em>Breaking News</em> running along the bottom of the screen.</p><p>‘We interrupt this program to bring you the following urgent message.’ She waited, holding a hand to her ear, listening.</p><p>‘There have been several hundred reports across the country of people becoming ill due to an infection caused by a mutated form of the <em>ophiocordyceps unilateralis</em> fungus. Infected patients experience symptoms that include fever, nausea, unexplained paranoia as well as disorientation and in some extreme cases random bursts of violence. It is advised that for the safety of the public, if you experience any of these symptoms that you immediately contact the following number displayed on the screen.’</p><p>“What on earth – Edwin collar wondered out loud just as his wife, Willa, came through the front door. She used to be a combat medic, but turned paramedic after their daughter was born. Edwin was a teacher at a local school.</p><p>“Hey” His wife sounded exhausted. “Have you seen the news?” They kissed, Willa then kissed her daughter, who was transfixed with some animal show and her purity, on the forehead. She and her husband then made their way to the kitchen. Willa Collar is a strong woman. Stronger than most men even, but she seemed uneasy. This worried Edwin.</p><p>“Just saw, what the hell is going on love? Are you alright? You seem a little…upset?” He watched his wife take the wine off the shelf and pour 2 glasses of wine before passing him one and taking a seat at the kitchen island.</p><p>“Edwin…It’s bad. This infection. They don’t know how to stop the spread. Most of the patients die within 24 hours. And it’s spreading fast, like real fast.” She took 2 big gulps of wine before continuing.</p><p>“And the patients…They turn hostile in the end, and most of ‘em don’t even remember their own names in the end.”</p><p>Now Edwin has only ever seen his wife cry twice in his life, and he had known her since he was 14 years old. The first, when her father died, and the second right after their daughter’s birth.</p><p>Tonight would be the third. And even though he didn’t know it then, it would also be the last.</p><p>“Oh love, that sounds…horrible – do you still have to go into work? Can’t you stay with us for a while?” He rubbed soothing circles unto his wife’s back, whilst she tried to dry her falling tears.</p><p>“That’s the thing” She looked up at her husband, her best friend, tears welling up. “The government is forcing all military <em>and</em> ex-military medics to return to the field. To gather up the infected safely before it spreads too far and wide to control. And they aren’t really giving us a choice”</p><p>To Edwin it felt as if someone was pouring a bucket full of ice down his back, the icy water trickling down his spine, shocking him all the way to the core. The last time his wife was in the field, she almost didn’t make it back. He couldn’t lose her. Not again. He couldn’t worry where she was, if she was safe. Alive. It would kill him; he was sure of it.</p><p>“No no no” he muttered, now pacing around in the kitchen, spaghetti long forgotten. “What about Raelle? She needs her mother Willa. <strong><em>I</em></strong> need you. Please” He pleaded with his wife, but he knew, she didn’t really have a choice. <em>To serve and protect.</em></p><p>Willa had dried her tears. “I know. I’ll come back. That’s a promise.”</p><p>They locked eyes. Edwin nodded, “Okay. Okay.” A beat. “We are going to be okay. You’re going to be okay. Our baby will be okay. We’ve got this.”</p><p>Willa smiled weakly at him, “Dream team”</p><p>“Yeah, we sure are” He smiled back and gave her shoulder a light squeeze. “You want some spaghetti? Raelle helped make it. She even listened to my singing.”</p><p>“Better woman than me, that one. But your cooking truly is amazing and I love you.”</p><p>“I love you too.”</p><p> </p><p>Later that evening Edwin and Willa Collar were cuddle up on the living room couch, their daughter sleeping soundly on her dad’s chest. They were content. The slight buzz of worry slowly nagging at the back of their minds hushed by the shared bottle of wine and their daughter’s laughter.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>56 days. The world ended in about 2 months. Everything known to the current civilization scrapped. Replaced by the pure instinct to survive, even if it meant killing your neighbor before he killed you.</p><p>Within the first 4 days, the amount of infected increased with more than 6 times the amount. Within the first week those who had been infected, but hadn’t died, had … How would one say this? Turned? Turned into savages. They were dubbed ‘runners’. These people (could you even call them that?) were like rabid dogs. They would run around attacking anyone, even family members. Turns out if you got bit you turned too. The government had gone silent after 15 days.  That’s when they started the quarantine zones, every non-infected person was ordered to move into a quarantine zone by FEDRA (the federal disaster response agency). On day 19 they dropped bombs all across the country, except for the QZ’s, in hopes to control the spread of the fungus. No luck, just a lot of innocent lives lost.</p><p>Willa Collar did not like the way FEDRA handled things. She saw a fellow soldier, a man, no a boy. No older than 19, kill a man and his daughter, just because his superior ordered him to do so. She would rather shoot herself than an innocent man and child.</p><p>After 3 weeks the first rebellion attacks started within the QZ’s. They called themselves the fireflies. Their main objective was to find a cure and to overthrow the FEDRA soldiers. Headquarters was somewhere in Pittsburgh, and the group slowly grew in numbers as civilians looked for answers.</p><p>Two weeks after that, Willa took her husband and daughter and fled from the Boston Quarantine zone to Pittsburgh, in hopes of joining the fireflies and finding a cure. She did have a medical degree after all, as well as military experience.</p><p>The fireflies’ leader, Marlene gladly accepted her, as well as her husband and child into their group, and they became good friends. Like family even. Not long after Willa joined, did the fireflies overthrow Pittsburgh, and she quickly climbed the ranks to the top, becoming the right hand man – or woman rather, to Marlene herself.</p><p>And that was how Willa Collar became one of FEDRA’s most wanted criminals.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. 16 October 2019</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>It has been six years. After Pittsburg was overthrown by the fireflies, it didn’t take long for some of the civilians to turn against them when they couldn’t provide food or a cure to them.</p><p>The fireflies were driven out by a new group, the Hunters. These Hunters, killed any trespassers on sight and brutally. They were to be avoided. Willa and her family were now living with the rest of the remaining fireflies (their numbers were slowly dwindling, due to a lack of hope on ever finding a cure) in an old school in a small town a few hundred miles outside Pittsburgh.</p><p>Willa was in charge of this group, whilst Marlene was in Salt Lake City Hospital, were other doctors were desperately trying to come up with a cure. Nothing promising yet.</p><p> </p><p>It’s been six years and they still hadn’t found a cure. FEDRA remained in some parts, mostly big cities like Boston. Their one and only goal now to kill any fireflies. Or anyone willing to stand up against them really.</p><p>If Willa was being completely honest, she had lost hope as well. But she wouldn’t say that out loud, for fear that her daughter would lose hope too.</p><p>Her husband was in charge of the children’s education. He taught them how to place snares, how to know what berries you could eat, what poison ivy looked like. How to set up traps. How to use a knife. How to load a gun. That was the sad reality for children growing up after 2013.</p><p>Her daughter didn’t seem to mind though. She was currently sitting in the cafeteria, across from her mother and father. As they were eating their lunch, (stolen military issued packages from none other than FEDRA), her father was demonstrating to her how to tie knot on a rope.</p><p>Oh how she adored her witty six-year-old. Short blonde unruly hair, much like her own, sticking out from underneath a red baseball cap her father had given her. Intelligent blue eyes observing every little thing her father taught her.</p><p>“So you make a loop. Kinda like a rabbit hole, Okay? Then the rabbit” he takes the end of the rope and runs it through the loop “Comes out of his home and runs around his tree.”</p><p>“Then the rabbit goes back into his home. There, now you know how to tie a bowline knot, so you can climb down a tree or cliff safely.”</p><p>“Like this?” She takes the rope from her dad, undoes the knot and tries to tie the knot again. After a few minutes of trial and error she gets it done and shows it to her parents, smiling wide and proud.</p><p>“I did it!”</p><p>“You sure did kiddo” her dad gave her a high five.</p><p>“Well done honey” her mother smiled at her. Incredibly proud, yet also incredibly sad that her daughter had to grow up this way. That the monsters under the bed were so incredibly real for her. And there was absolutely nothing she could do about it.</p><p>
  <strong>22 October 2027</strong>
</p><p>Today was Raelle’s 15<sup>th</sup> birthday. She woke up to the sound of her parents singing happy birthday to her at 6 in the morning.</p><p>“Dad, you really need to take some singing lessons from Mom” She chuckled and tossed him with a pillow.</p><p>“Oh you and your mother secretly love my singing. I just know it.” He smiled and handed her a small wooden box.</p><p>“Happy birthday honey” her mother smiled at her and wrapped an arm around her husband. Their daughter was growing up fast</p><p>“What is it?” Raelle asked tipping the box from side to side to hear if something moved.</p><p>“Come on! open it!”</p><p>Raelle opened the box to find a brand new hunting knife, wooden handle, and at the bottom her initials carved in. She loved knives, it was the class she excelled in most.</p><p>“Oh wow. It’s stunning!” She picked it up and held it in her hand, examining every angle of it.</p><p>“Made it myself.” Her dad spoke up proudly.</p><p>“Really? It’s awesome dad! Thank you guys, so much.” She hugged her parents tightly.</p><p> </p><p>After having breakfast there came a knock on the door. A boy, George, stood on the other side with an envelope in hand.</p><p>“Good morning” he said chirpily “I have a letter for you Ma’am” He handed the letter to Willa.</p><p>“It’s from Miss Marlene”</p><p>“Thanks George” he smiled and walked off as Willa closed the door.</p><p>Opening the letter, she felt her stomach drop. For some reason it felt like she was going to get bad news. It was hardly ever good news if she got contacted by Marlene.</p><p>
  <em>Dear W.C.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Hi old friend. I have promising news. A girl, 16, has been found in Boston. She says she knows of a possible immune child in a village near her. And that a lot of young kids were being reported immune in the area. We have decided to investigate this theory, and require all the children from your base camp to come to the labs in SL for testing. It is required that all children under 17 should be gathered and ready for transport by Monday of next week. We will be sending a school bus, pretending to be FEDRA soldiers collecting run-away children for school.</em>
</p><p>Now Willa Collar was not an idiot. Something was off. If there really were immune children out there, news like that would spread like wild fire. And why would they need the children from this base camp? She knew Marlene was desperate for a cure, but was she really willing to risk the lives of children for it?</p><p>“Mom? What’s wrong?” Willa was broken from her train of thought by the concerned voice of her daughter. Her younger than 17-year-old daughter. <em>No you won’t have her, I won’t allow it.</em></p><p>“Pack your things, We’re leaving. Tonight."</p>
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